Mame, our parrotlet, is three years old now. He is a constant presence in our lives, observant and demanding. For such a tiny bird, we are always amazed at his ability to make his needs known and influence the flow of daily activity in our home. He watches us constantly from his cage, waiting for one of us to sit on the sofa--a sign that we are not busy and might let him out. Then, he starts in with his "Kaki kaki. Kaki kaki. Kaki kaki," appeal, kaki kaki being Japanese for scratch. He loves to have his feathers scratched, particularly the feathers behind his neck that he can not easily groom himself. On weekends, he will sometimes spend half of the day out of his cage. We have let his feathers grow back so he can fly now, increasing his sense of independence. When he is hungry, he will fly back to his cage to eat some pellets, and then fly back to whichever one of us is doing the most interesting thing. With me, we mostly spend time at the computer, with Mame on my shoulder. Sometimes he raises a leg, tucks his beak into the feathers on his back, and takes a nap, rocking slowly back and forth as I move the computer mouse. These are a few photos from last Sunday, with Mame sitting on my knee, walking on the table and craning his neck to see what my wife is doing, and basking in the light that comes through the curtains and makes patterns on his feathers. Mame is a physical manifestation of the joys of domesticity.